


Two Saddest Words in the English Language

by cynicalkairos



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Best Friends, Feelings Realization, First Kiss, Flashbacks, Fluff and Angst, Haley talks some sense into Aaron, M/M, Revelations, Some other moments mentioned from prior episodes, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Worried David Rossi, maybe more? - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:08:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25524142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cynicalkairos/pseuds/cynicalkairos
Summary: “If in fact it’s not too late to realize that something’s ‘too late’, then there’s a good chance that it’s not.” ― Craig D. Lounsbrough
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/David Rossi, past Aaron Hotchner/Haley Hotchner - Relationship
Comments: 12
Kudos: 84





	1. Too Late

**Author's Note:**

> Based off the episode "Route 66" (season 9 episode 5)

Flashes of white light blinded Aaron as he drifted in and out of consciousness.

It was bright― too bright, way too bright. He definitely wasn’t in the BAU anymore.

He was… moving? Everything was happening too fast for him to confirm.

With all of his strength, he looked around, smiling to himself when he saw the faint outline of Dave sitting next to him.

He felt heavy like the weight of the world collapsed on top of him, 

Hearing the combination of sirens and yells in the background, his eyelids drooped closed slowly.

And then suddenly, his world went black.

Aaron opened his eyes and he was in a car. He frowned. Was he dead? He still had no idea.

Seeing Dave in the front seat, driving the car down a low-lit street, eased him. It was nice to see a familiar face.

The car stopped and looked up at a movie theater. The lights were bright but inviting, calling for him to come in. He obliged and walked toward the grandiose doors in front of him. 

The doors opened for him and he was inside an empty foyer. Floating in front of him was a red balloon and, when he looked down again, Aaron was in a black tux. 

Aaron concluded that he definitely wasn’t at the hospital anymore.

He followed the balloon as it moved into the large, expansive theater. Only it wasn’t a movie theater. It had too many seats for that. It was a theatre like on Broadway.

The large space was empty, completely silent. Except for one person.

Aaron stopped at the end of the row. It was Haley, sitting there in a long gown with her hair pinned. He felt tears start to brim his eyes. It was her. She was there.

Haley turned to Aaron with a big grin on her face. “Hi, honey! I saved you a seat.”

He couldn’t move. 

_This couldn’t be real,_ the rational part of his brain told him. _She’s dead._

But, then again, he could be too.

Aaron slowly walked over to her. Taking her hand, he confirmed to himself that this was real, this was happening.

“You look so beautiful,” Aaron said quietly, mesmerized by the fact that she was there holding his hand.

Haley laughed, the soft sound gracing his ears. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”

Aaron sat next to her gingerly, as if he made one wrong move, she would disappear again.

“I miss you.” Aaron’s eyes were glued to hers, taking in every detail.

“I know.” She smiled, before turning to look at the screen. “So, how’s Dave?”

Aaron paled.

Haley knew about his feelings for David Rossi. 

After their divorce, she was the first one to notice how he always checked his phone immediately after the text tone rang, how a smile appeared on his face when talking about him, and how he put even more effort into his hair and wardrobe before going into work.

Aaron couldn’t deny it. Haley was right. 

At the same time, he suspected that Dave returned his feelings. Aaron wasn’t the Unit Chief of the Behavioral Analysis Unit for nothing. He saw the way Dave looked at him. He noticed how Dave always knew what he needed, whether that be more coffee or just a talk.

Dave was always there.

Haley looked over after he didn’t answer and she knew. “What did you do?”

“It’s what I didn’t do.” Aaron sighed and turned to look at the screen as well. “I never told him.”

However, after Haley died, Aaron couldn’t bear to endanger someone he loved again. So, he moved on. He met Beth and asked her out like any normal person would. She was pretty, nice, and great with Jack. Everything he could have wanted.

But, no matter how happy he was with Beth, Aaron didn’t know why his stomach churned when Dave talked about Strauss with that fond look in his eye and that damn crooked smile on his lips. Something deep inside him wished it was him Dave was talking about, not her.

That was four years ago. Aaron had moved on. Dave had moved on. End of story.

“Oh, it’s starting!” Haley cried out, pulling him out of his thoughts.

Aaron turned to look at the flickering screen and saw himself finishing the marathon with a large smile on his face. 

Then Jack appeared on the screen, holding up a sign. Haley smiled. “Oh, look how happy he is.”

Jack ran up to him after the race as Aaron put the medal on him.

Then Beth walked in.

“Who’s that?” Haley mused, smirking slightly at the sight of a new woman in his life.

“Her name’s Beth,” he replied, not able to take his eyes off the screen. He watched himself hug her, the image brewing a twinge of guilt in his stomach. 

The weird thing was he didn’t know if it was for Haley sitting right next to him or—

“He’s gotten so big,” Haley said.

On the screen, Beth, Aaron, and Jack played in a blanket fort. That day was one of the few times he was genuinely happy, seeing his son laugh and smile without any inhibitions.

“Oh, she’s really good with him,” Haley noted, sniffing to hold back the tears.

“She’s not you.”

“And she’s not Dave.”

The comment caught Aaron’s attention. She continued to look at the screen, watching at the various moments on the screen.

“What are you talking about?” Aaron said defensively, shaking his head. “We’re just friends.”

Haley silenced him with a shush, glancing at him and then pointing at the screen. “You’re missing the movie.”

Aaron looked back at the screen and he inhaled shakily when Dave replaced Beth’s spot on the screen.

Dave teaching Jack how to make pasta with Aaron leaning against the cabinet next to them.

Dave helping Aaron with his reports, rolling his eyes with a loving warmth behind them.

Dave cradling Aaron in his arms protectively after a gunshot caused the searing pain in his ear to return.

The screen showed him every small glance, every subtle touch, every time that Aaron relinquished the stoic exterior for Dave, revealing the broken man with a heart of gold underneath.

Aaron’s jaw fell open in awe, his heart pounding against his chest. If he remembered correctly, for most of these, he didn’t even realize he was even attracted to Dave. He looked over and saw Haley staring at him. 

“You were saying something about how you two are ‘just friends?’” Haley asked, a knowing smile on her lips hiding behind the innocent tone in her voice.

They were just friends. Well, maybe they had something, but Aaron lost that chance a long time ago. He was totally over Dave, their potential relationship, the guilt and regret he had for never telling him, the strong, passionate love he had for the other man that scared him so much—

 _Oh, shit,_ Aaron thought. _I’m still in love with him._

“Yes, Aaron, you are,” Haley said, his eyes widening when he realized he said that out loud.

Aaron looked back at the screen to see him and Dave sharing a drink together on the jet after a long case, talking about nothing of importance whatsoever. 

His eyes softened, filling with more tears, when he saw it— the small smile on his face as his eyes flitted between Dave’s lips and his eyes.

Aaron smiled.

It was the moment he realized that he was in love with Dave initially. The dim lighting gracing his features, casting shadows on his face in such a way that made him look like a Greek statue. Something that didn’t even belong on this earth.

Aside from his physical features, the smooth conversation and the feeling that he didn’t have to be Agent Hotchner around him, everything about Dave just made him fall in love.

And he was scared to fall in love again, especially after what happened to—

“It’s okay, you know,” Haley said, out of the blue, her eyes fixated on the screen. “To be with him.”

Aaron frowned, furrowing his brow in confusion. “But, Haley—”

“As much as I hated to admit it, I knew you were right for each other when I saw the way you looked at him when he was playing with Jack.”

Aaron looked down guiltily, tears brimming his eyes. She didn’t deserve this. Her afterlife shouldn’t be spent worrying about Aaron and his disastrous attempt at a love life. 

“I’m not mad, Aaron. I’m happy for you.” Haley squeezed his hand. “You can’t be alone forever.”

The tears were now streaming down his face. He couldn’t help it. It was all happening so quickly. Emotions that he tried to repress were now projected in front of him on a giant screen.

“I can’t do that to him. He’s already lost so much,” Aaron said, shaking his head.

“You have, too.”

Aaron focused on the screen, knowing if he looked at her, he would break completely. 

On the screen, Aaron knelt beside a drugged Dave, his hand on his shoulder to keep him awake and in touch with reality. He remembered the steadily flowing tears, the dazed look in his friend’s eyes, the blood dripping out of his nose.

Aaron was the only one that could break Dave’s delusion and take the gun aimed at Morgan out of his hand.

That enough was a reminder to make Aaron’s chest tighten, the breath almost sucked out of him.

———

Haley and Aaron continued to watch his life before his eyes, making comments about Jack growing up, Aaron’s inability to communicate, you know, just typical things.

It felt almost normal again. Like nothing bad ever happened.

“Go, go, go! Goal!” Haley shouted in excitement, throwing her arms in the air, when Jack kicked the ball into the goal. The shot shifted to Aaron and Dave high-fiving and smiling at each other, their eyes lingering longer than socially acceptable.

Aaron smiled affectionately, remembering back to a time when he convinced himself that David Rossi was being “just a friend” when the man who never woke up before 9:00 A.M. on a day off willingly helped coach his kid’s soccer game that started at 7:00 A.M.

They were both silent, taking in the small clips from Aaron’s past. 

When he was watching the moments of him and Dave meeting for the first time, a dark figure with a large box of popcorn crossed in front of him, mumbling apologies and excuses as he moved to sit on the other side of Haley.

The man pulled down his hood and Aaron’s face contorted with anger when he saw that it was George Foyet. 

“I hope I didn’t miss anything,” Foyet said, as he settled in his seat.

“What’s he doing here?” Aaron asked, now on full alert, glancing between him and Haley.

“Oh, it’s okay,” Haley said, comforting him. “I invited him.”

“Wowza,” Foyet commented, causing Aaron to look back at the screen. 

David Rossi was playing the piano, a rare sight to see. He wore a half-buttoned button up with the sleeves rolled up, exposing the smooth skin underneath. The black and white firelight casted shadows on the delicate angles on his face, highlighting the tousles in normally neat hair.

Aaron saw himself sitting in the corner with a nearly empty glass of whisky in his hand, admiring the clueless man.

“I know him. That’s Agent Rossi, right?” Foyet asked, the sound of his voice making Aaron seethe. “He is hot.”

“Mmhm. I know, right?” Haley agreed, causing Aaron to rip his eyes away from the screen to glare at Foyet. 

“I would tear that up,” Foyet said, laughing, before turning completely to Aaron, smiling smugly when he saw the anger boiling behind Aaron’s eyes. “Hey, I bet he’s a real tiger in the sack, huh?”

Just as Aaron managed to look away from Foyet, he swiftly shot Haley in the stomach.

All of the sudden, Aaron felt his heart stop.

Memories of that fateful day resurfaced.

Walking into the house he formally owned to see Haley dead on the ground, her eyes looking lifelessly at the ceiling. 

The feeling of relentlessly bashing Foyet’s head in with his fists.

Seeing the blood on his fists in the moments after.

Aaron then flung off his suit jacket and pressed it to her stomach, hoping to stop the bleeding. He called out for help but no one came. He was desperate. He needed to save her. He couldn’t lose her again.

“Would you pipe down a little bit?” Foyet said mockingly. 

Aaron started apologizing rapidly, the words seeming to flow out of his mouth without him being able to stop it.

“I can’t stop the bleeding,” Aaron said, defeated, looking with wide eyes up at Haley, who appeared like nothing ever happened. “I can’t stop the bleeding!”

“It’s okay. You’re not supposed to.” 

Haley met his eyes. He frowned when he heard Foyet beside him say, “She’s right. So, can we watch the show? Thank you.”

Aaron silently looked between Foyet and Haley, no idea what was going on. 

Then he followed their eyes and clenched his jaw. 

The movie ended with a shot of Aaron and Dave looking at each other, standing with their chests nearly touching. He could feel the heat of Dave’s breath on his neck.

However, at the last second, Aaron turned away and walked back to his car. As he drove off, he caught a glimpse of the longing look in Dave’s eyes.

That was the last night they spent alone together before Haley’s death.

After the screen faded to black and the lights turned back on, both Foyet and Haley sighed.

“That was awesome,” Foyet said, completely in awe. “I didn’t know you and that agent guy were so in love. Almost made me feel it myself.”

Haley held his wrist and smiled, agreeing with a hum. “Well, it’s time to go.”

Aaron looked down, removing his jacket to see that there was no blood at all. He was in shock. He almost didn’t process Foyet leaving them.

Haley started to follow him, leaving Aaron to scramble after her.

“This was fun,” she said to Aaron as she entered the foyer. 

“I don’t want you to go.”

She laughed over her shoulder. “What about Jack? And Dave? They need you now more than ever.”

“Just a little while longer?” He pleaded, desperating following her.

“There’s no time.”

“Please?” 

“You have to go back now.”

Aaron stopped in front of her, placing himself between her and the door. “I want to stay with you.”

She smiled grimly, moving past him. “I know you’re the big boss man, but you can’t always have your way, you know. Sometimes, you just have to roll with it.”

Aaron turned to look at her. “I don’t know how.”

“Happiness is a choice, so choose,” Haley said, before exiting the doors.

Aaron followed her. He was scared. He knew that this was the easy way out, but he wanted it. He wanted to be with her and not see the horrors of the real world any longer, even if it meant sacrificing the beauties of it at the same time.

“But how— how do I choose?” Aaron asked, desperation laced in his voice.

Haley stopped, turning around. “Get out of your head. The heart is the one that knows, so follow it.”

She then glanced behind her. “Nice car.”

Aaron looked, following her eyes, and saw Dave leaning on the front of the car, waiting for him. 

A sad smile spread on his lips, the sight alone threatening more tears to fall. Of course, Dave was there. He was always there, even if he refused to see it for so long.

Foyet kept talking about something, but Aaron’s thoughts were fixated on the car and the man driving it. 

As much as he wanted to stay and run away from everything in his life, the small, crooked smile on Dave’s lips reminded him that he needed to go back. He needed to tell Dave that he loved him and wanted to be with him.

Foyet’s touch to Aaron’s arm caught his attention. He watched him walk away and disappear, fading away with that damn red balloon in his hand. 

Aaron looked back at Haley, his sad eyes memorizing every feature. 

“You need to tell Dave how you feel,” Haley said, looking at him with a small smile, before winking at him. “I have a feeling he feels the same way, so don’t screw it up this time.”

Haley took off her ring, stepping closer to him. She gave it to him and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. “Goodbye, Aaron. And, yes, I still love you too.”

Aaron watched helplessly as she walked off, disappearing before him.

He glanced at the ring in his hand, closing his fist around it.

When he looked up again, Aaron saw Dave staring at him, a small smile on his face. He tilted his head toward the car, beckoning him silently. Just the way they functioned. 

Aaron smiled in return.

Then he walked slowly over to the car and got in.

Hopefully, he wasn’t too late.


	2. On Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” - George Eliot

The moment Aaron hit the ground, Dave rushed to his side, checking his pulse and making sure he was breathing.

“Morgan, call the ambulance,” Rossi commanded, keeping his composure despite how much adrenaline was pumping through his veins. “Everyone else, on the plane in thirty minutes. I’ll ride with Hotch to the hospital.”

The team dispersed eventually, initially unsure about leaving Hotch, and Rossi looked back down at Hotch, the panic now settling in. 

“Oh! And Garcia?” He called out, causing the technical analyst to turn around. 

“Yes, sir?”

“Get all of your gadgets and stay with Hotch at the hospital. I need someone to be there to keep us updated on his situation.”

Garcia saw the frantic look in his eyes, an emotion that the man rarely showed. She was no profiler, but she was around them enough to see how much he cared about the man barely conscious on the floor next to them.

She smiled and nodded, wrapping the older man in a tight hug. “He’s going to be okay.”

“I know,” he replied before she pulled away and walked out of the room.

Morgan then appeared in the doorway. “EMTs are on the way.”

Rossi nodded, glancing back at the man passed out on the floor. “Good, I’ll take care of everything from here.”

After Morgan left, Dave knelt down on the ground next to Aaron, brushing back the fallen hair on his face.

“Come on, Aaron,” he mumbled desperately. “Stay with me.”

The ride to the hospital was stressful.

Aaron always scared the hell out of him when he pulled stunts like walking into hostage situations without a bulletproof vest on or trying to take down an UnSub underwater.ut nothing terrified him more than seeing him hooked up to all of the tubes and machines.

Once they reached the hospital, Dave stayed with Aaron the entire way, sitting by his bed through all of the tests after they got him stabilized.

Only when Garcia arrived in all of her sunshine and glory did he dare to leave the emergency room.

After he briefed the team and updated them with the results of the multitude of tests, Dave jumped on a plane and headed to Kansas to join the team. It was no surprise he couldn’t focus. His best friend was on death’s door in Virginia, while he was on a plane halfway across the United States.

To prevent himself from obsessing over Hotch’s condition any further, Rossi threw himself into his work.

Everything seemed to be normal to the unknowing officers at the crime scenes, but, to the team, they could see the stress hidden beneath the layers of bravado. 

The worried glances to the phone whenever Garcia called.

The impatient attitude when he interviewed witnesses.

The disregard of his personal health to spend more time working on the case.

They attempted to ease with statistics or stories, but nothing worked or it worsened.

After hearing about a new crime scene, Rossi drove Blake down, the others either staying behind or driving in another SUV.

“How're you holding up?” Blake asked after multiple long minutes of silence.

“I’m fine.”

“So, you’re not worried about—”

“Nope, not at all.” Blake turned to look at him, narrowing her eyes. Rossi only glanced over and sighed when he saw the knowing look in her eyes. “Okay, maybe a little.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Rossi frowned. “We have a case.”

“Yeah,” Blake started, shaking her head. “There’s more to it than that.”

“Okay Dr. Phil, enlighten me.”

She chuckled, watching the miles of empty desert pass by out the window. “When my husband and I first got married, he was stationed in Ethiopia. Everything was going good until I received a phone call. He was in a car accident. It was minor, but he was injured enough to be taken to the hospital.”

Rossi gripped the wheel tighter, his knuckles turning white. To prevent her from seeing the distress in his eyes, he stared at the road. 

“Was he okay?” He managed to ask, hearing his voice falter at the end.

Blake noticed it and looked over at him, her eyes softening. “Yes, he was fine. Just had to get some glass removed and some stitches put in. He was discharged later that day. After that phone call, I couldn’t do anything. I barely even got out of bed. I couldn’t stand the fact that I was across the world from him and I couldn’t be at his side.”

Rossi nodded, absentmindedly running his thumb along the leather of the wheel. “Well, luckily, he’s only a few states away.”

“Distance isn’t the problem here, Rossi. Your heart is.”

He sighed, giving in. “It’s that obvious?”

“Quite frankly, I don’t know how anyone else didn’t notice you staring at his ass when he wore jeans to work that one time.”

Rossi chuckled and blushed, taking one hand off the steering wheel to hide it. “That ass was made for jeans and I stand by that.”

Blake smiled, glad to see him joke again, something that boosted the team’s morale and optimism on the darkest cases. “So, how long have you been together?”

“No, no, no, we were never—” Rossi felt the tension build in his hands as he gripped the steering wheel again. Tears brimming his eyes, he weakened his grip and took in a deep breath, a feeble smile gracing his lips. “One night, we were having drinks after a case. We were laughing— joking around like usual, but there was something different, something I couldn’t place. Soon, he had to leave. We stood on the porch, saying our goodbyes, but I couldn’t move. He was right there, inches away, all I had to was—”

Rossi stopped abruptly to wipe the tears from his eyes. He glanced over at Blake, seeing her soft expression. He sighed, shaking his head. “I never wanted to push him, you know, after his divorce and Haley’s death. He needed a friend back then, nothing more.”

There was no telling where they might be today if it wasn't for him and his fear of ruining their friendship.

She nodded, seeing how keeping his feelings a secret from his best friend and everyone else around him burdened him. David Rossi was the man everyone went to for advice whether they asked for it or not, the man who handed out his unconditional love and support to the people he cared about with no expectation of anything in return. 

“And what about now?” She asked, furrowing her brow.

Rossi met her eyes, a dreadful, grim look on his face. He quickly looked back at the road, feeling the anger and disappointment in himself building in his voice as he spoke, “That was four years ago, Blake. He moved on to a beautiful woman that is everything he deserves and I moved on to someone with practically the same first name as him who’s now dead because I couldn’t find her fast enough. That’s the end of the story!” 

Blake was taken aback. In the short time she had known him, he only raised his voice if a suspect or witness wasn’t cooperating. She knew there was nothing she could say that would make him feel better.

Rossi’s thumb anxiously tapped against the steering wheel rhythmically, forming a melancholic melody even he didn’t recognize. The adrenaline from speaking about his feelings he tried to repress for the past five years made his heart race, thudding against his chest.

As sure as he was that Aaron returned his feelings, the thought that he was simply being just his friend tormented him. 

_Friends don’t almost kiss you on your front porch_ , Dave thought.

His eyes focused on the road the rest of the time, the dull sound of smooth jazz playing in the background. 

They soon pulled up to the crime scene, parking to the side of the road, after seeing the others arriving before them. Before they got out of the car, Rossi turned to Blake, saying quietly, “I hope you will keep this between us. ”

Blake gave him a small smile, placing a hand on his. “I will, but you need to tell him.”

Rossi nodded, watching her open the door and leave, before following close behind.

But, as soon as it was done and the case was closed, everyone boarded the jet to head home, extremely exhausted both physically and mentally.

Rossi called Garcia and insisted that he would watch Hotch tonight. She protested, saying that he should get some rest, but he convinced her when he told her that he would sleep on the jet ride back.

Hearing that he was at least awake and out of surgery eased him enough to fall asleep in his chair, his head leaning on his hand. 

Rossi woke up to see Blake hovering above him, a hand on his shoulder. He sighed and checked his watch while starting to get up. Only two hours of sleep.

“Are you going to visit him?” Blake asked, referring to Hotch.

“Yeah, uh— I’m staying there tonight.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? He’ll still be there in the morning.”

Rossi sighed, tossing his go-bag over his shoulder. “You don’t need to worry about me. I am a-okay.”

Blake nodded, knowing she wouldn’t win this battle. 

They both walked to the SUV in silence, Rossi getting in the passenger seat with Morgan at the wheel and Blake sitting in the back. 

He stared out the window the whole ride, his fingers drumming against his thigh. 

Thankfully, Aaron was stable, otherwise he would be more of a nervous wreck than he already was.

The team arrived at Quantico and went their separate ways, all of their eyes on Rossi as he walked immediately to his car. 

Driving carefully, he arrived within ten minutes, finding parking and heading inside. 

Even though the nurse told Dave that visitation hours were over, one flash of his badge and a simple, vague explanation allowed him to proceed. He wasn’t dealing with any of that bullshit tonight. He was too damn tired for that.

When he reached Aaron’s room, Dave stopped at the glass sliding door. 

Aaron looked so calm in the faint light of the lamp above his bed, his usual tense and uptight air gone and replaced with a soft and relaxed demeanor. The worries of the world disappeared from his shoulders. It was nice to see him that way.

Dave attempted to open the door slowly to not wake him, but, as he shut it, he heard the man say, “Dave?”

He turned around and gave him a small smile. “Hey, Aaron.”

“What’re you doing here?” Aaron asked sleepily, a small drawl from having just woke up present in his voice. He checked his phone on the bedside table. “It’s 10:00. You must be exhausted.”

“Eh, losing a little sleep never hurt me.”

“What about the time you drank an entire glass of Fireball after working all night on a case because it looked vaguely like apple juice?”

“Okay, maybe it’s hurt me once,” Dave said, smiling when he saw the glint of amusement in Aaron’s eyes. He made his way across the room, pulling the chair up next to the bed and sitting down.

When he looked back at Aaron, Dave was met with a concerned gaze and a frown plastered on the other’s face. “What’s that look for?”

“You have a cut on your face.”

Dave subconsciously touched his forehead, feeling the small bandages holding the skin together, before shrugging it off. “It’s nothing.”

“It doesn't look like nothing,” Aaron mumbled. He reached over and placed his hand on Dave’s forehead, rubbing the skin next to it delicately.

Aaron never initiated such an intimate touch like this and Dave didn’t have the faintest desire to move away. He cursed himself as he started to lean into Aaron’s touch, catching himself and readjusting his posture.

“I told you. I’m fine.” Dave gently grabbed Aaron’s wrist and removed it from his forehead, placing it on the bed. “How’re you feeling?”

“I’m fine,” Aaron replied mockingly, a small smile on his face. This caused Dave to roll his eyes fondly, looking down to see his hand still on Aaron’s wrist, neither one of them wanting to move first.

He met Aaron’s eyes once more to see the previously sharp, focused eyes replaced with soft ones, the usual cold brown irises now warm and inviting. Dave watched those beautiful eyes flit from side to side, knowing that something was on his mind.

“I can hear the gears turning, Aaron,” Dave said, letting go of his wrist and leaning on the armrest. “What’s going on up there?”

Aaron cracked a small smile, finally breaking eye contact to look forward and out at the hallway. He picked at his hands, rubbing his fingertips together in thought. 

“I saw Haley,” he said finally, his face set in a frown.

Dave blinked a couple times in surprise. “Yeah? How’d it go?”

“We were at this theater. All big glitz and glamor. You’d like it.” Aaron glanced over at Dave cautiously, as if he was measuring his reaction. “It was truly a unique way to watch my life flash before my eyes.”

Dave huffed out a laugh at Aaron’s ironic use of the cliche, the sound causing the corners of the younger man’s lips to turn up slightly. “Always loved a good highlight reel.”

“Yeah, me too,” Aaron muttered, tears trickling down Aaron’s cheeks.

Dave put his hand on Aaron’s shoulder, rubbing his shoulder as a poor attempt to calm him down. “Aaron, you don’t have to tell me if it hurts too much. I’m sure seeing Haley on the screen didn’t exactly help.”

“Dave,” Aaron said softly, refusing to look at the man beside him. “Haley wasn’t in the movie.”

The older man frowned and removed his head to sit back in his chair, completely intrigued by the new information. What could get Aaron Hotchner so worked up? He honestly had no idea. “Then who was? Was it Beth?” 

Aaron couldn’t help but laugh, a small smile spreading over his face. He looked down at his hand, the dim light highlighting the stained tears on his cheek. “It was you.”

To say that Dave was shocked was an understatement, but the implications behind his presence in Aaron’s vision made his heart race.

“Aaron—”

“I convinced myself I was happy with Beth and I had finally moved on, but what I saw reminded me of who truly made me happy.”

Aaron continued rambling on and on and Dave clung onto every word, hardly believing this was actually happening. All he could do was sit there and absorb every piece of information that flowed out of Aaron’s mouth. He’d never seen him so carefree about the words he let out of his mouth.

His mind drifted to the man sitting beside him. The fine lines on his face from age and stress, his tousled hair from having to undergo surgery, the dark circles under his eyes from working all night in his office were all deviations from his regular put-together Aaron. Even then, he was still as stunning as he was all those years ago.

Then a hand touching his own caught Dave’s attention. 

He looked up to see Aaron looking at him now, a wide grin on his lips. He gazed into his eyes, seeing them as if for the first time all over again.

Red and puffy from crying, Aaron shined brightly with what Dave guessed was hope and… love. Dave remembered that same twinkle in his eyes decades ago when he was talking to or talked about Haley. 

It wasn’t until recently when Dave caught glimpses of that same look in passing and, strangely, it was always directed toward him.

Before he knew it, Dave couldn’t stop himself from rushing forward and cutting the rambling Aaron off with a kiss. Leaning over the bed, he cupped Aaron’s jaw with his hands, the gentle, yet loving kiss saying more than words ever could tell. 

He poured every ounce of guilt, regret, and love he buried inside for all those years into the kiss. All of the anger and disappointment washed away as his own tears mingled with Aaron’s.

At that moment, Dave was making up for all of the times he wished he could kiss that wickedly sexy smirk off Aaron’s face, all of the times he wished he could kiss away the tears Aaron shed when they were alone, all of the times he wished he could kiss some sense into Aaron and remind him that someone loved him—

The one time he _should_ have kissed him under the warm light of his porch.

When he pulled away, Aaron looked at him with dazed eyes and swollen lips, his dilated pupils dancing across his face. After a few moments of silence and seeing him process what just happened, Dave concluded that he managed to render him speechless. 

“You just kissed me,” Aaron whispered, earning a chuckle from the older man.

“Oh, I’ll do more than that once you get out of that hospital bed.”

Aaron’s eyes widened, his breath hitching at just the thought of David Rossi in his bed. Then the playful glint entered his eye, placing his hand on Dave’s chest. “Why wait?”

“As much I would love to have passionate sex on a hospital bed,” Dave started, brushing the fallen hair out of his face, “I don’t want to be the one to tell the doctor how your stitches got torn.”

Aaron couldn’t help but laugh, raising an eyebrow in agreement. Dave pressed a kiss to his forehead, before sitting back down on the chair next to him.

When Aaron looked back at him, Dave could see the mix of exhaustion and pain relievers in his eyes. “You need to get some rest.”

“Will you stay?”

He took his hand and pressed his knuckles to his lips. “I am never letting you go ever again.”

A small, drowsy smile graced Aaron’s lips as he started to fall asleep. “I love you, Dave.” 

“I love you too, Aaron.”


End file.
